Chapter 15
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Translator: Wjin
Chapter: 15
Chapter Title: Chapter 15 - Hidden Evil in the Shadows (2)
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“Damn it!!!”
“Squad Leader! What’s suddenly wrong… Could it be, Lumia?”
Bell’s expression turned to horror as she quickly assessed the situation.
I clenched my teeth hard. The problem was that I had severely underestimated the trait penalties.
Even knowing about the monstrous trait ‘Combat Avoidance,’ I had just left it be.
It was entirely my mistake.
It wasn’t intentional desertion. I could easily guess that she must have fallen into a panic.
Even if she wasn’t a person with a specific trauma like Lumia, such incidents were common during operations.
In situations where bullets fly like rain, comrades die before your eyes, and enemies’ blades flash, anyone regardless of age or gender suffers the same mental stress and shock.
And every time, those with weak mental fortitude, regardless of being soldiers or officers, would fall into panic, abandon the front line, and flee.
“Damn it…!”
However, I couldn’t recklessly chase after Lumia right now.
Even if Bell Mayer’s magic was barely holding things together, at this point where the situation was turning into a chaotic melee, even I couldn’t afford to leave my post.
Boom! Ta-ta-taang!!
“Guhck!!”
“Die!! Die!!”
The soldiers rose up as one and thrust their bayonets. The bandits pierced by the sharp spears tumbled to the ground, but other banditors swung their weapons and fought back.
There were many casualties on our side as well. The Flare magic Lumia had launched was also gradually losing its power and fading.
‘If the darkness descends, that’s when the real hell will begin.’
Thanks to the Flare magic, we could at least distinguish friend from foe.
If that flame illuminating the sky were to die out, the already chaotic battlefield would surely plunge even deeper into the abyss.
‘Then…!’
I gazed at the flame that was gradually scattering. I wasn’t just some nobody; I was someone who had successfully cast Fire Ball before. Doesn’t that prove I definitely have magical ability?
My stats are MAX, and as a Magic Officer, my combat power is MAX too.
I steeled my resolve once more. I had to solve the problem right in front of me first, then deal with Lumia later.
I understand the structure of magic. I dredged up the essence of the basic elemental studies I had been reading about for two days straight from my brain.
“Activate.”
I awakened the dormant magic core. My heart pounded, and mana, bursting out like a dam breaking, spread throughout my entire body.
I controlled my breathing and grasped the structure of the Flare magic that was still illuminating the sky.
Flare.
Red magic. It’s not explosive; it’s a flame that emits bright light into the sky. The only light that will guide us in the darkened battlefield.
Hwaaaahk!!
As soon as I imagined it, a brilliant flame erupted before my eyes. A crimson color distinctly different from the Fire Ball.
Having successfully cast the spell, I immediately hurled the flame with all my might toward the sky.
“……?!”
As if by magic, the surroundings became as bright as midday.
“Wh-what is this!!?”
The Flare Lumia had used was bright enough, but the Flare I created was not merely a light source.
The sky was indigo.
The darkness that had been faintly spreading was swept away at once, and the environment of the battlefield changed drastically.
“Th-this is…?”
Bell Mayer turned around as if she couldn’t believe it, but the one who cast the magic was just as surprised.
“Solar Prominence?! You used that for illumination!?”
“We can talk about that later. For now, let’s support the front line!”
At least, we had prevented our vision from being blocked.
But that was it.
The 4th Company led by Lieutenant Ivan was slowly being pushed back by the bandits who attacked relentlessly. Although we had held them back for a moment, it seemed like it was only a matter of time before the defensive line was breached.
“Kuhaha!! You’re lighting the path for us yourselves? Much obliged, Mr. Magician!”
One soldier fell to the axe swung by the bandit chief. A non-commissioned officer overseeing the scene charged forward at the death of his subordinate.
Boom!!
“Ugh-!?”
“Protect Big Brother! Break through the path and escape right now!!”
The bandits guarding his side weren’t just standing by and watching. After a moment of confusion, they swarmed in with triumphant expressions. Now, they were at a level where you could only think they were right on top of us.
‘I’ve been practicing my magic use bit by bit, but…! Will I really be able to control it properly?’
As I was carefully weighing the risk of friendly fire against the bandits’ onslaught, just as I was about to unleash a spell.
“The reserves have arrived!! Reinforcements!!”
Suddenly, someone’s roar rang out. Following it, a flashing violet light pierced the front line.
Pachizizik!!
“You bastards, you goddamn idiots.”
Standing tall on the ground where the lightning surged was a man in civilian clothes, holding daggers in both hands.
“What!?”
“Why the hell are you attacking a perfectly fine fortress right when I’m on my day off.”
A strangely familiar back and a unique, scratching voice.
Soon, Bell Mayer’s eyebrows, who had been pouring out magic from the front, twitched strangely.
She began to withdraw the mana she had deployed.
“Bell Sergeant? What are you doing?!”
“If that man is here, the battle is already won. It’s frustrating, but my magic would only get in the way now.”
Only then did I realize exactly who the man before me was.
“Claude Raine Sergeant…?”
“See for yourself, Squad Leader. That’s why he acts however he wants to anyone, yet he doesn’t get kicked out of the military.”
Claude gripped his dagger tightly.
“You bastard!!”
The bandit who had just killed an NCO thrust his bayonet, but it was the bandit, not Claude, who spilled blood.
“Euk, Keok-!!”
The bandit fell to the ground, spewing blood. A faint lightning flickered along the blade of the dagger.
Patchik!
“Roman!!! You bastard! I won’t let you get away with this!!”
The massive bandit chief roared and swung his axe at the death of his subordinate. His thunderous voice echoed through the night sky, and simultaneously, Claude’s figure vanished from sight.
“……Huh?”
With that last, dumbfounded sound that escaped my lips, the chief’s body stopped in the very pose of swinging his axe.
As if a toy doll were being separated, a huge head rolled down along his shoulder line.
“Tch, damn, his voice was annoyingly loud.”
Claude, who had appeared at some point, frowned and shook the bloodstains off his hands.
He had just sent two people to the grave in the blink of an eye, yet he acted as if it were nothing.
‘The Butcher of Lightning.’
One of Sergeant Claude’s titles that I could see on the unit management screen.
I used to wonder what it meant… but now, it was a nickname that perfectly suited his terrifying appearance.
“The chief was killed in one blow…?”
“Ta, Tartuk big brother!”
With their fierce charging chief dead, the bandits’ morale plummeted. The Ukranian military never missed that opportunity.
Boom! Boom!!
“Pursue them to the end! Do not let a single one of those bandits live!!”
Not only that, but the troops that had entered with Claude from the rear were joining the fray one by one.
“Company! Now! Push them back!!”
Lieutenant Ivan’s company also seized the momentum and began to pressure the bandit group heavily, flipping the battle situation in an instant.
The bandits, losing their focal point, scattered like fallen leaves.
The ones who had broken through the defensive line were also shot down one by one.
‘We won.’
I let out a sigh of relief, then realized a fact I had forgotten.
“Right! Lumia…!!”
I hurriedly turned my head to check the direction she had been standing. I couldn’t see her clearly just a moment ago, but I could see traces of someone running away into the tall grass.
“Bell Sergeant, I’ll leave the cleanup to you!”
“Huh? Squad Leader!?”
“I have to bring back Sergeant Lumia!”
An anxious shout came from behind, but I didn’t have the time to answer. The bandits who had lost their chief would be easily suppressed before long. After attempting a desperate breakout and being stopped, being surrounded and annihilated was the natural course.
In the meantime, I had to bring Lumia back to her position before the commander of the other support troops, or even the main force, arrived here.
Desertion during an operation?
Don’t be ridiculous.
‘This is a huge incident that won’t just end with my head!’
I thought with a groan and began to sprint through the forest of the night.
My head felt like it was about to burst. My vision was white, and I didn’t even know where I was going.
Lumia Blue.
She just ran. Until the gunshots grew distant. Until the screams of people and roars mixed with desperate anger could no longer be heard.
Puk!
“Kyahuk!!”
What stopped her, lost in panic, was a branch sticking out from the ground. She hadn’t noticed it while running frantically.
Lumia tumbled over. She rolled over the grass, and a bitter taste of dirt filled her mouth.
Even after falling, she couldn’t properly regain her senses, but suddenly, a bright light illuminated the air.
For a moment, it was so bright she thought it was daytime.
A massive flame was floating in the air.
It was not a simple Flare. By feel alone, it was almost the size of the sun.
“My god…”
Even in the 3rd Battalion, filled with elite talent, there were few who could implement magic of that level.
And even more so on the front lines where a battle was currently raging.
“Could it be, Squad Leader Enok?”
The moment she recalled the name that had vanished from her mind for a while, Lumia realized what she had just done.
Unauthorized desertion during an operation.
A serious crime that could, depending on the circumstances, lead to immediate execution.
The inside of her head, which had been in an uproar until a moment ago, cooled down in an instant. At the same time, a chill ran down her spine.
“Ah, Aah…”
She had been in a panic, making proper judgment impossible. Lumia Blue hurriedly got to her feet.
The battle was still raging. If she hurried back right now, it might not become a big problem.
However.
“What’s that? Hm…? Hey, wait a sec.”
Her head reflexively turned at the voice coming from not too far away. Her purple pupils were directed at a group of suspicious black-robed figures that anyone would find dubious.
“…….”
“………….”
Her eyes met squarely with the person standing at the very back. His eyes were not the gaze of an ordinary person.
They were the eyes of a killer, someone who had killed people.
With the silence that descended afterward, Lumia froze on the spot as if she had met a wild beast.
“Who are you…?”
She forced herself to speak, but the robed figures did not answer.
They seemed to exchange glances for a moment.
“She saw us. She must die.”
“Leave it to me.”
They charged straight at Lumia without hesitation.